Second Time Around
by Orange Bulldog
Summary: Kim moves back to Chicago, and ends up in the ER, where she runs into Kerry. One shot for now, I might write a sequel at some point. My first ER fic! Please R&R!


Disclaimers: These are obviously not my characters. They belong to Michael Crichton or whoever else owns ER.

If you have issues with people of the same sex loving each other, or live somewhere that's illegal (in which case, consider moving), please move on.

Pairing: Kerry/Kim

Rating: PG for now

"Pratt, did you get the labs back on that-" Kerry stopped in her tracks as she looked up at Pratt and the patient he was with.

"Kim?"

Pratt looked back and forth between his patient and his boss. "You two know each other?"

"Can you give us a minute?"

Pratt rolled his eyes as he left, but luckily neither woman saw it.

"My god Kerry, I wondered if you'd still be here." The blond woman said.

"Only twice a month, actually, most of the time I'm upstairs. What are you doing here?"

Kim pointed to her foot, which was in a temporary splint. "I had a little accident on my rollerblades." She admitted.

"Broken?"

"Waiting on X-rays but he thinks so."

"Pratt treating you okay?"

Kim smirked. "I think he was hitting on me, but other than that, he seems like a good doctor."

"I'll talk to him, he's got to stop that." Kerry moved to go discipline her employee, but Kim grabbed her arm and stopped her.

"Kerry, don't. It wasn't a big deal, really."

Dr. Weaver almost continued, but relented and looked back at Kim. "I'm almost off here, if you need a ride or something? Unless someone's here with you?"

Kim shook her head. "I just moved back here a month ago, I haven't had a chance to reconnect with many people yet. A ride would be great." She smiled at the doctor.

"All right, then I'll come see how you're doing when I'm finished. Have someone find me when you're done if I'm not here yet. I'll go find Pratt." She paused. "It's good to see you again Kim."

"You too Kerry." Kim smiled warmly and watched Kerry walk away.

* * *

An hour later, Kerry was just finishing her last chart of the day when Neela came up.

"Dr. Weaver, there's a woman asking after you. She's waiting in chairs."

"Oh, thank you Neela." She stopped by the lounge and grabbed her things before heading to chairs.

Kim got up when she saw her ex-lover coming. She grabbed her crutches.

"I see the X-rays confirmed the diagnosis." Kerry commented.

Kim grimaced. "At least six weeks on these darn things. So, are you ready to go?"

"Perfect timing, actually. I was just finishing up."

"Have you eaten? We could grab something to eat, catch up? Unless you have other plans." Kim asked.

"That sounds great."

* * *

"Kerry, I just have to say, I'm sorry for the way things ended between us." Kim said once they had been seated. "I tried to reach you, but I heard you went to Africa suddenly, and then I got a job in San Francisco and I figured you didn't want to hear from me anyway."

"No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have taken off like that. I just couldn't face Robert, and I was so afraid he'd tell everyone else and I couldn't face them yet either." She admitted.

"Wait, you came out to Romano?"

Kerry nodded. "Right after I talked to you. I was just so mad about what he was doing to you. And it just sort of came out."

"Wow. So did he tell everyone."

"No, for once in his life he kept his mouth shut. I was afraid for nothing though, when they did find out almost no one batted an eye."

"It usually is better than you think it will be." Kim agreed. "So you told them all?"

Kerry looked down, fighting back tears. "Not exactly. I started dating a firefighter. When Sandy found out I was in the closet, she decided to force me out of it, so she came to the ER and kissed me right in the middle of everyone."

Kim laughed out loud. "She sounds hilarious. You two last after that?"

"Not at first, no, but I got over myself. We were together for a little more than two years after that. We had a son." Her tears threatened to spill over.

Kim just waited for the rest of the story.

"She was killed in the line of duty last year."

She wasn't expecting that. "Oh god, Kerry, I'm so sorry." She placed her hands on top of the older woman's in comfort.

"So you have a son?" she tried to bring the topic back to happier thoughts. It worked, and Kerry smiled and brought out her wallet.

"Henry. He's almost two now."

"He's adorable, Kerry."

"So, what about you, no girlfriend came with you back to Chicago?" Kerry tried her best to look only tangentially interested in the answer, but she failed miserably.

"No, I was dating someone in San Francisco but it wasn't very serious so we ended it when I took this job."

Both women were silent for a moment, contemplating their own thoughts as well as the woman across the table. Then they both spoke at the same time.

"Kerry.."

"Kim.."

They laughed, and then the tall blonde inclined her head in deference. "You first, Kerry."

Kerry looked down at the strong hand covering hers. "I know I treated you horribly when we were together. Hell, it doesn't even deserve to be called together, I wouldn't have acknowledged it at the time. But I was scared, and now I'm not."

Kim briefly closed her eyes, but left her hand covering Kerry's.

"I know, and I should have been better about that. It had been so long that I forgot how scary it was, and I'm sorry if I pushed you. I should have known better than to get involved with a scared first-timer anyway." She smiled wryly.

"I'm not a scared first-timer anymore."

The truth and implications of that settled in as they locked eyes for a long moment.

"You want to see my new place?" Kim ended the discussion with a quirk of her eyebrows and clear subtext of her feelings. As soon as the words were out of her mouth she realized a problem.

"Oh god I'm sorry, you have to go home to Henry."

"Actually he's with his grandparents this weekend." A shadow of sadness passed over Kerry's face but then was gone. "So yes, I'd love to see your place."


End file.
